These 5 John Travolta Movies Are Undisputed Masterpieces

John Travolta is an iconic triple threat who rose to stardom starring in hit movies such as Saturday Night Fever, Grease, and Pulp Fiction. The New Jersey-born star dropped out of high school in 1971 and moved to New York City, where he earned minor parts in a few stage productions before moving to Los Angeles. After making his feature film debut in the 1975 supernatural horror movie, The Devil’s Rain, Travolta was cast in Brian De Palma‘s Carrie in a small but significant role that elevated the young actor’s career. Around the same time, Travolta was cast in his star-making role as Vinnie Barbarino in the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter.

By the late 1970s, Travolta was one of the most popular leading men adored for his boyish good looks, natural charm, and undeniable charisma, making him a major box office draw. Travolta and his career continued to soar with his performances in a diverse array of films, including Get Shorty, The General’s Daughter, The Taking of Pelham 123, and Hairspray. Over the years, Travolta has maintained a solid career both on the big and small screens, but like any actor, he has a select few films that rank as genuine movie masterpieces.

5

‘Carrie’ (1976)

John Travolta as Billy Nolan sitting in the driver’s seat of a car with his head out of the open window in Carrie (1976)

Image via United Artists

Sissy Spacek stars in the film adaptation of Stephen King‘s 1974 novel, Carrie, as Carrie White, a shy teenager who is constantly bullied by her classmates and subjected to abuse by her strict religious mother (Piper Laurie) at home. When Carrie discovers that she has the power of telekinesis, she soon decides to use her ability to seek her long-awaited revenge against her vicious tormentors, ultimately unleashing a powerful force of violence and vengeance.

Brian De Palma’s Carrie is a cult classic and a horror masterpiece that features Travolta in a minor role as the delinquent boyfriend of Carrie’s main antagonist, Billy Nolan, who is widely remembered for playing a major part in the movie’s infamous prom scene. While his role is relatively small, Travolta’s performance in Carrie was a major milestone for the young actor and inevitably led to a string of future roles that put him on the path to infinite stardom.

4

‘Saturday Night Fever’ (1977)

Travolta stars in one of his most essential movies, Saturday Night Fever, as a young Italian-American, Tony Manero, who spends his weekends dancing at a local disco where he attempts to escape the racial tensions and discontent in his Brooklyn neighborhood. When Tony teams up with another talented dancer, Stephanie Mangano (Karen Lynn Gorney), to compete in a dance competition, the two begin to fall for each other, but as Tony begins to reveal his true colors to her, her disappointment leads Tony to face the cold, hard truth about himself and his life.

At the time, Travolta was already well known for Welcome Back, Kotter, but the overwhelming success and critical praise of Saturday Night Fever made him a household name. Saturday Night Fever earned Travolta his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor, making him, at the time, one of the youngest nominees in the category. Travolta delivers a compelling performance, ultimately revealing his impressive talent as a dramatic performer as well as a captivating dancer who effortlessly dominates the dance floor. The actor hits every move of the intricate choreography with such incredible ease while brilliantly maintaining a smooth composure with electrifying showmanship that makes Saturday Night Fever a cinematic masterpiece.

3

‘Blow Out’ (1981)

John Travolta listening intently in Blow Out (1981), directed by Brian De Palma

Several years after Carrie, Travolta reunited with Brian De Palma to star in the 1981 neo-noir mystery thriller, Blow Out, which is based on Michaelangelo Antonioni‘s 1966 psychological mystery movie, Blowup. Travolta stars as a Philadelphia sound technician, Jack Terry, who, while recording sound for a low-budget slasher movie, accidentally captures audio evidence of a murder involving a promising politician, subsequently putting himself in imminent danger.

Despite being a financial disappointment at the box office, Blow Out did earn generally positive reviews from critics, including Roger Ebert, who gave the movie four out of four stars, with many of them citing Travolta’s performance as one of the film’s main strengths, solidifying it as one of the actor’s most marginalized masterpieces. The movie has since gained immense support from film fans and notable filmmakers, including Quentin Tarantino, who ranks it as one of his all-time favorite films. Travolta’s performance is one of sheer intensity and uncertainty that immediately draws audiences in with curiosity, which is gradually heightened by De Palma’s signature Hitchcockian style.

2

‘Grease’ (1978)

Travolta stars in one of the most nostalgic movies of the 1970s, Grease, as a handsome greaser, Danny Zuko, who meets and falls for a wholesome exchange student, Sandy Olsson (Olivia Newton-John), while on summer vacation. As Sandy and Danny part ways, Danny puts their summer romance behind him and returns to school in his leather attire and bad boy persona, but when he discovers that Sandy has enrolled in the same school as him, he’s forced to choose between his social clique and the girl he loves.

Early on in his acting career, Travolta had been cast in a minor role in a touring production of Grease and was incredibly familiar with the show’s material, making him the perfect fit for the leader of the T-Birds. Travolta’s performance as Danny Zuko is not only his most famous role but also one that established him as a pop culture icon and generational heartthrob. Travolta conveys his character with the perfect combination of sex appeal and heartfelt humor, which goes hand in hand with his gyrating dance moves and sensual singing voice that ultimately cements him as one of the best triple threats in modern movie history.

1

‘Pulp Fiction’ (1994)

John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson as Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield wearing black suits and holding a gun in ‘Pulp Fiction’

Travolta takes on an against-type role in one of Quentin Tarantino’s greatest masterpieces, Pulp Fiction, as an impassive, no-nonsense hitman, Vincent Vega, who, along with his partner, Jules (Samuel L. Jackson), works for a powerful gangster, Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames). Pulp Fiction stands out from other crime movies for its story structure, following four different but intertwining stories, its disjointed narrative, and stellar cast, which also includes Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel, and Tim Roth. The movie is widely recognized as a fitting tribute to pulp fiction magazines and hardboiled crime novels that became popular during the mid-20th century, adding a violent and graphic touch of nostalgia to this must-see Travolta movie.

Tarantino had originally wanted Michael Madsen, whom he had previously worked with on Reservoir Dogs, for the role of Vincent, but due to other commitments, Madsen passed on the offer, which the actor later admitted that he regretted. According to Danny DeVito, who was one of the film’s executive producers, Tarantino then set his sights on Travolta, whose career at the time had taken a slight downfall. Despite his previous musical roles, Travolta conveys an enigmatic character with a dry, twisted sense of humor that makes Vincent one of the most alluring characters in the film. Travolta earned immense praise for his performance from both audiences and critics, noting it to be an unusual but successful casting choice on Tarantino’s part. Travolta’s performance in Pulp Fiction not only revived his career but also earned him his second Academy Award nomination for Best Actor, cementing it as one of the actor’s most timeless masterpieces to date.